Through its sponsorship of Solar Team Eindhoven, Alfen is supporting 23 student engineers from Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) as they take Stella Juva - the world's first solar-powered ambulance - from an ambitious idea to real-world testing in Kenya.

What happens when renewable energy, engineering talent and an urgent healthcare challenge come together? For Solar Team Eindhoven, the answer is Stella Juva: a solar-powered vehicle designed to bring healthcare professionals, medical equipment and essential services directly to people in remote communities.

In a workshop in Eindhoven, the team spent the one year turning an idea into a vehicle unlike anything on the road today, built to bring medical care to places where roads, fuel and electricity can't be relied on. It's this combination of innovation, young talent and real-world impact that inspired Alfen to sponsor the team.

Supporting the engineers of tomorrow

At Alfen, we believe innovation isn't limited to the products and solutions we develop ourselves. It also means creating opportunities for the next generation of engineers to explore ambitious ideas, test new technologies and tackle challenges that matter.

Solar Team Eindhoven shares that outlook. Its students combine different technical disciplines and dedicated a full year to developing a pioneering solar-powered vehicle. Along the way, they gain practical experience while working as one team towards a shared goal.

Stella Juva also puts renewable energy to work in a setting where reliable power can make an immediate difference. In some remote areas, difficult roads and limited access to fuel, electricity and charging infrastructure can prevent healthcare professionals from reaching the people who need them.

Through the sponsorship, Alfen helps bring greater visibility to the students' work. We'll continue supporting the team, sharing important moments from their journey and helping their story reach a wider audience.

Bringing healthcare to people

Unlike a conventional ambulance, Stella Juva is not primarily intended to transport patients to a hospital. Instead, it has been designed to bring healthcare directly to communities.

The vehicle enables healthcare professionals to conduct blood tests and health screenings, administer vaccinations and perform pregnancy ultrasounds. It can also power essential medical equipment and provide the refrigeration needed to keep vaccines cool.

Solar panels integrated into the roof generate energy for both the vehicle and its medical equipment. A 50 kWh battery stores this energy, allowing Stella Juva to keep operating when sunlight is limited. On a sunny day, the vehicle is expected to travel up to 715 kilometres without relying on local charging infrastructure.

The students developed Stella Juva in collaboration with technical specialists and international healthcare organisations, including Amref Health Africa, whose input helped the team understand the realities faced by healthcare professionals in remote regions and design the vehicle around practical medical needs.

One year from concept to vehicle

The team designed and built Stella Juva from the ground up in just one year. During the vehicle's unveiling in Barneveld, the Netherlands, colleagues involved in bringing the sponsorship to life at Alfen joined the students, their families and fellow sponsors for a firsthand look at the result.

The students took attendees through every stage of the development process, from the original mould and early components to the technical blueprints, showing how the vehicle evolved from first concept to fully functioning prototype.  

Behind the finished vehicle were months of engineering decisions, testing, problem-solving and collaboration. Seeing that journey up close offered a powerful reminder of what a motivated team of young engineers can achieve in a relatively short time.

The next test: Kenya

Stella Juva's next chapter takes place in Kenya. In August, Solar Team Eindhoven travels there in collaboration with Amref Health Africa. The programme begins with a kick-off event at Amref International University, with representatives from the Dutch embassy and Kenyan diplomats, followed by field tests at two locations.

Together with local healthcare professionals, the team will use realistic medical scenarios, including cases related to tuberculosis care, to assess how the vehicle and its equipment perform outside a controlled development environment. These tests will provide valuable insight into Stella Juva's capabilities, the practical needs of healthcare providers, and the improvements that may be required to develop the concept further.

After returning from Kenya, the team plans to present Stella Juva at events in the Netherlands and potentially elsewhere in Europe, with the broader ambition of encouraging healthcare organisations and technology companies to help develop and eventually produce the concept at scale.

Innovation that reaches beyond technology

Stella Juva is more than an innovative solar vehicle - it's an example of what can happen when technical creativity is connected to a clear human need.

For Alfen, sponsoring Solar Team Eindhoven means supporting renewable-energy innovation while building relationships with talented engineers who may help shape the energy system of the future. It also gives us the opportunity to contribute to a project that uses engineering to make essential services more accessible.

We're proud to support the students  and look forard to sharing the next stages of their journey - from the first field tests in Kenya to the future possibilities for Stella Juva.